Each morning, Bill Scher and Terrance Heath serve up what progressives need to effect change on the kitchen-table issues families face: jobs, health care, green energy, financial reform, affordable education and retirement security.
MORNING MESSAGE: You Have To See This Wisconsin Video
OurFuture.org's Dave Johnson: "You just have to watch this video of a farmer named Tony Schultz in Wisconsin talking to the crowd about what is happening at his local schools and to his own community because of the governor's tax-cuts-for-corporations, budget-cuts-for-the-people budget ... Tuesday please attend a rally to Defend the American Dream. Click through to get on the list and locate a rally near you. Many are taking place after working hours."
Weekend Rallies Show Wisconsin Battle Far From Over
Huge weekend Wisconsin protests. AP: "Madison Police estimated the crowd at 85,000 to 100,000 people -- along with 50 tractors and one donkey -- by late afternoon ... 'Now ... we trade in our rally signs for clipboards and we take to the streets to recall the Republicans,' Sen. Chris Larson of Milwaukee told the cheering crowd, 'and in one year we recall the governor that refuses to listen.'"
ThinkProgress deems it the "Main Street Movement": "The Madison rally is part of a much larger Main Street Movement of average Americans demanding fairness in labor laws, social spending, and taxation that has emerged in Ohio, New Jersey, Florida, Michigan, and elsewhere. But yesterday’s rally in Madison is noteworthy because at 85,000-100,000, it was bigger than the biggest tea party protest, the September 12, 2009 rally in Washington, D.C..."
Last Deal Before Shutdown?
Another stopgap measure to keep government open for three weeks expected to pass this week. CNN: "An extension would give Congress until April 8 to either reach a deal for the rest of fiscal year 2011, which ends September 30 ... Democrats advocate what amounts to a two-step approach that would work out agreement on smaller budget cuts for the rest of the fiscal year while negotiating reforms to the tax code and entitlement programs such as Medicare and Medicaid to better balance budgets in the future."
House conservatives unwilling to continue short-term measures to keep government open. Politico: "...freshmen and conservatives warn that there must be resolution soon on a budget funding measure that extends through the end of the fiscal year, so that the lawmakers can move on to bigger targets: the fiscal year 2012 budget and the tricky vote on the debt ceiling."
Senate Minority Leader threatens to vote against raising debt limit. HuffPost quotes: "I don't intend to support raising the debt ceiling, and I don't believe any Senate Republicans do unless we do something important related to spending and debt."
"We're not broke" reminds W. Post's E. J. Dionne: " There are many different paths open to fixing public budgets. And we will come up with wiser and more sustainable solutions if we approach fiscal problems calmly, realizing that we’re still a very rich country and that the wealthiest among us are doing exceptionally well ... A phony metaphor is being used to hijack the nation’s political conversation and skew public policies to benefit better-off Americans and hurt most others."
"Return of the Salmonella Republicans." TNR's Jonathan Cohn: "For next year’s budget, the Republicans have said they want to reduce discretionary spending to 2008 levels ... such a cut at FDA would likely force the agency to lay off 600 inspectors, actually reducing the force to slightly less than what it was in 2008 ... What makes this particularly troubling is that 2008 spending levels were clearly inadequate--even in 2008 [when a] series of salmonella outbreaks got everybody’s attention."
Sen. Bernie Sanders lays out a progressive deficit reduction plan: "The wealthiest people in this country, who are now doing phenomenally well, are also going to have to help us with deficit reduction. That is why I introduced legislation which would place a 5.4 percent emergency surtax on income over $1 million. The revenue would go into an Emergency Deficit Reduction Fund. Just doing that - asking millionaires to pay a little bit more in taxes after all the huge tax breaks they have received -- will bring in up to $50 billion a year."
Bloomberg poll shows public skepticism of both parties in deficit debate. Al Hunt: "By 53 percent to 44 percent, Americans say that when it comes to creating jobs, it’s better to cut spending and lower taxes than to invest in projects such as high-speed rail, broadband Internet and new sources of alternative energy ... [But the] public, while not high on Obama’s vision for the economy, thinks it’s a lot better than the one put forth by Republicans ... By a ratio of 2-to-1 or greater, they oppose substantial changes in funding for the Environmental Protection Agency, or education programs, like college loans, or federal funding for medical and scientific research."
Support For Nuclear Power Diminished
Bipartisan support for nuclear power weakens in wake of Japan crisis. NYT: "...even staunch supporters of nuclear power are now advocating a pause in licensing and building new reactors in the United States to make sure that proper safety and evacuation measures are in place. Environmental groups are reassessing their willingness to see nuclear power as a linchpin of any future climate change legislation. Mr. Obama still sees nuclear power as a major element of future American energy policy, but he is injecting a new tone of caution into his endorsement."
U.S. nuclear plants face risks from natural events. NYT: "...most of the nuclear plants in the United States share some or all of the risk factors that played a role at Fukushima Daiichi: locations on tsunami-prone coastlines or near earthquake faults, aging plants and backup electrical systems that rely on diesel generators and batteries that could fail in extreme circumstances."
House Republicans bring back proposal to put nuclear waste in Nevada's Yucca Mountain reports McClatchy.
Republicans forcing EPA chief to continually testify and respond to ridiculous questions. W. Post: "...Jackson received her seventh grilling on Capitol Hill this month, more than any other federal agency director has faced ... Jackson addressed familiar questions, most of them from Republican lawmakers. How would you describe carbon? 'As black carbon soot,' Jackson answered in part. Is the EPA reviewing farms and particulate-matter pollution that can be kicked up in dust? Not really, Jackson said. 'EPA recognizes that dust happens.'"
Conservatives Defend Banks Against Foreclosure Settlement
NYT's Paul Krugman exposes conservatives flacking for banks by opposing foreclosure fraud settlement: "In the days and weeks ahead, we’ll see pro-banker politicians denounce the proposed settlement, asserting that it’s all about defending the rule of law. But what they’re actually defending is the exact opposite — a system in which only the little people have to obey the law, while the rich, and bankers especially, can cheat and defraud without consequences"
GOP shifts Fannie/Freddie strategy away from quick demise, reports WSJ: "The decision to take a piecemeal approach with individual bills reflects the challenge in forging a political consensus—even among Republicans ... One measure would accelerate the wind-down of the firms' combined $1.5 trillion mortgage portfolios, which are already set to decline by 10% annually. Other bills would eliminate the firms' federal affordable-housing goals and gradually raise the guarantee fees that Fannie and Freddie charge lenders ... Some of these ideas were embraced by the White House..."
One Year Anniversary Of Health Reform Law
HHS Sec. celebrates first year of new health reform law, in Politico oped: "Children are now protected from being turned away by insurers because of a pre-existing condition. Seniors enrolled in Medicare now have the freedom to get preventive care ... for free. A Patient’s Bill of Rights is freeing families from some of the worst abuses of insurance companies, including cancelling coverage when you get sick because of a paperwork error. Early signs show that, after years of decline, the number of small businesses offering coverage to employees is increasing. [And] the law is demanding transparency and accountability from the insurance industry to bring down premiums."
Republican attack temporary waivers to health reform law, and also ask for them. Politico: "While Republicans charge that companies and states are receiving free passes from the reform law, Democrats say the administration is demonstrating flexibility and fairness ... The administration contends certain waivers and adjustments are necessary to ensure an orderly transition toward 2014, when most of the major health reform provisions come online ... More than two dozen Republican governors sent HHS a letter in January asking the secretary to waive the provision citing the lack of federal support and a need to 'manage our state budgets on behalf of our citizens.'"
